Picking up the pieces

We just got home from our son's house for dinner and visiting with our daughter and fiance. It was a mixed grill dinner of the meat they grabbed from the freezer before they fled Hurricane Ike on Thursday morning. They were pretty sure the electricity would go out and the food would spoil. So, we enjoyed their steak, chicken, and pork that had been frozen in the giant ice chest until tonight. And our grandson made brownies for dessert. It was all delicious and we even put some ice cream, and some of the spray whipped cream stuf, and a cherry on top.

It seems they, my daughter and bf from the Kemah Galveston area will have a home when they get back and it seems like her office is ok. It is in Kemah and it probably didn't get water in it, because the storm surge was less than expected and topped out at about 15 feet at the house on Galveston Bay. The friend who drove over to check the office out couldn't get to it, but said it looked intact. Her next door neighbor called to tell her the only thing she could tell about the house is that there is a tree that has fallen over the fence. Hopefully it will be ok. It took nearly two years to get it built. There is a curfew from yesterday until Monday sometime in the area where they live. The damage in the Houston, Alvin, Galveston area, and the whole area is incredible. Even Brennan's in Houston burned down last night during the storm. Yesterday I'd watched the storm coverage so much that when a reporter said there were cars parked in the cruise ship parking lots I wondered what sort of surreal cruise that would have been with a hurricane the size of the Gulf of Mexico in the Gulf for a week and no car or severely damaged car when you got back to the dock. I cannot even imagine what on earth that would even be like. The ships come back in on Sunday morning. My guess is they won't be leaving again Sunday evening, but I could be wrong. There was someone trying to check into a hotel in Houston and was outraged when he couldn't because of flooding. His outrage stemmed from the fact that it hadn't even rained there yet...how could it be flooding!? The hurricane was still in Galveston then and it was hours before the eyewall came across. The storm surge was causing water to back up into that area. Last we saw he was trying to get his truck out of the flooded parking lot.

I hadn't realized how many people we have gotten to know down there in the years since she first moved to Houston about 25 years ago. Some of her friends were not so lucky and have lost a lot. All are alive and that is what counts. However, one was sort of hoping her boat might not make it. She has been living on it for a few years now and broke her leg a while back on the thing. I think she doesn't love it as much as she used to when she bought it in Florida and sailed it back to the Houston yacht club. They have some really fine friends down in that area. It is a good friend who will drive to several cities to let you know your, the bf's, parent's home is ok, your office is ok and that he couldn't get into the area where they live to check on the house. That is a real good friend. He is living without water, electricity and basic services while home to board up his house, but he is going down the street tonight to his neighbor's house who has a generator so he can charge his cell phone. I hope he takes some of the 10 pounds of steak he is going to have to throw away and share it with the generator guy. He is working in Baltimore right now and will be flying back on Monday. He is leaving the boards up on his house until hurricane season is over in November. He may be a son in law one day, too. My youngest daughter is pretty much in love with him. He is a really good friends with my older daughter and her bf, Robert.

I haven't heard anything from my friend, PJ who lives on Galveston island, in a couple of days. Her mom has a dialup connection and it is very slow, so it limits her time online. My prayers are with them that their home is still there. She is a realtor so works from home, but there is a corporate office where she checks in and they send her paycheck. Hope it is ok. Hope her husband's job is ok, too.

There was a statement from the cities that it would be probably a month until the electricity is back on down there. There is a widespread outage of power, water, and we think maybe gas. The kids are going to pick up a generator here if they can find one at Sam's or Costco or one of the home repair stores tomorrow. He has an RV they can actually live in until basic services are restored, if their neighbor from hell doesn't kick up too much of a stink about it all. I'd not like to live without electricity, meaning a/c, in Galveston for any length of time at all, ever. It can get pretty cool down there, but not in September or October and even Thanksgiving is iffy about the cool part. It has been cool when I've been down there, but it must have been in winter or something.

I don't know how she will operate her business though without water and/or electricity. I know this, she will make it work somehow. She always has made the absolute best out of every situation. My hat is off to you, kid.

Ike...what can I say

I wouldn't plan a trip now. They are expecting the entire island to be underwater. At 10am there was already water in The Strand area and coming up over the sea wall. At 11am there are people on rooftops on Bolivar Pennisula. The hurricane isn't making landfall until about 11pm tonight. There is much more information and awesome pictures on KHOU the Houston tv station. The usual idiots are on the Galveston Island seawall playing with the surf....when the newsguy just said he nearly got swept away just a few minutes ago. Crystal Beach is under water. A friend of our's mother and brother have homes there. I'm sure they are up here with him now.

In 1900 there was a devastating hurricane that covered the entire island and killed almost everyone there. There is much information at this url http://www.1900storm.com/ Clara Barton traveled down to Galveston to set up help and recovery. She was 78 then and was the head of the American Red Cross which was 19 years old at that time. That was her last disaster.





It is going to be very bad for my daughter's home and my friend, PJ's home. However, they both are safe in their respective havens for the moment. The storm surge is expected to be 20 feet or more their areas.

No serenity these days

Well, these days have not been serene at all. Ike is coming right for my daughter's house and for my friend's in Galveston. I don't think there will be a reprieve this time, but I'm still praying there won't be a 20' surge and get their homes. My daughter is up here and my friends from Galveston are on the road somewhere going to her mom's. My daughter is staying with her brother this time. I'm sure that is fun with her four or five cats added into the household 2 cats, one dog, and one 7 year old boy. I can't wait to get down there tomorrow.

We spent the morning pruning trees away from the house and cutting and bundling them, so the trash guys will take it tomorrow. It was hot here today. While we were working on this task my father in law called to ask for help reporting his phone outage. He had gone to his neighbor's house. So, hubby had to stop and go over to check out the deal. I had reported it, as well as, my fil, and I asked for an expedited service call, but was denied because 0f the hurricane. South Texas will need techs down there, but my in laws are 90 and 91 years old. That wasn't a factor to our phone company. My husband took my cell over, but they couldn't figure it out. Maybe soon they will begin to understand they really need more than we can provide.

Anyway, back to it being hot and it was HOT while I was cutting and bundling limbs. Hubs returned just about the time I was about to perish and finished it. After we got everything put away I came in, shucked my clothes and got in a cold shower to cool off. Afterwards I put on a clean nightgown and put a clean sheet over the couch cushions and watched some tv. That is a wonderful way to spend a hot afternoon.

We should know more by this time tomorrow night about Ike and the fate of our family and friends. If you are in the path of Ike, God bless you and protect you.

All this and the memory of all that was lost on 9-11...lives, buildings, planes, hope and a feeling of safety in our own country. I did take a few moments to think and remember that awful day.

Nearly back

We are nearly done setting up all the computers and making sure we have firewalls and anti-virus proggies on them. I'm as stiff as can be from all the tension and decision making and hubby isn't any better. Maybe be back to full time blogging today or tomorrow. I'm finding all sorts of stuff that needs doing around here now that I haven't had my head stuck in a computer for a while. In the middle of everything yesterday I decided the curtains in my computer room needed to go while we had everything moved. Now I don't like the blinds I put up. Hubby is probably going to "moider" me before this is all over. Gotta go...he is doing Q and A again. Oh Lordy.

Ruby Tuesday

Ruby Tuesday...this was taken the night before my birthday and it was a fun night....as you can see by the Vox bottle, a full bowl of tomatoes (my favorite thing) and exotic ginger flowers. The browning bananas..not so exotic.

Our Ruby Tuesday host is Mary, the Teach. On Tuesdays you can post any photo you like (it must be one of your own) that contains the color RED. Your photo can contain lots of RED or a little bit of RED

this was set up to post last week when I nearly forgot about Ruby Tuesday

Should be back soon...

We bought a new desktop today, but we have another one of those deadly dull meetings tonight starting in an hour. We won't have time to finish tonight, but hubby's mother and dad called and they have decided they don't want to go to the farm tomorrow. They were going to check on the cotton crop, but it is raining here now. She didn't think it would be a good thing to try right now while it is raining. Hubby was sort of relieved to say the least.

Take care and know that I am not on the road to perdition in my movie viewing habits.
Plus, I really like my tiger daemon. A LOT.

out of memory

My desktop computer is on the fritz and I can't dl pictures to my laptop. Something I haven't figured out yet. I did take a picture of my mailbox today, but it is still in the camera.

News from the real world - my cousin and I met for lunch to celebrate our birthdays. Mine is the 24th and hers is the 29th of August. It was a great time to catch up and talk about so much stuff. She is really a fun person to be around. We then went to watch the Cowboy game and meet up with my husband and daughter.

Anyway, when I get the other computer back working like it should I'll try to catch up with all of you picture taking folks. I think I see a usb port on the side of the laptop.